Tuesday, September 30, 2014

The 7th Annual
Sunny Isles Beach Jazz Fest returns to Florida's Riviera this November in a
weekend celebrating the soulful sounds of jazz music. Taking place from Friday, Nov. 14 to Sunday,
Nov. 16, the event is being produced by the City of Sunny Isles Beach in partnership
with the Sunny Isles Beach Tourism and Marketing Council to benefit Joshua's
Heart Foundation.

"We
are excited to host Jazz Fest 2014," said Sunny Isles Beach Mayor Norman
Edelcup. "This music festival
weekend isn't only about extraordinary jazz.
It's an opportunity to experience all that Sunny Isles Beach has to
offer. Spend the day soaking in the sun
on our white sand beach, discovering a new adventure, shopping or enjoying a
spa day and then stroll over to the park on Saturday night for a cool jazz
concert under the stars."

Expected
to attract more than 2,000 festival goers, this year's Jazz Fest will celebrate
the theme "What a Wonderful World," befitting Sunny Isles Beach where
residents and guests alike enjoy world class weather, services, amenities and
cultural activities. The festival opens
on Friday, Nov. 14 with a dinner event at Acqualina Resort & Spa on the
Beach, located at 17875 Collins Avenue.

The main
event takes place on Saturday evening at Heritage Park, 19200 Collins Avenue,
featuring local jazz artists like Leon Foster Thomas, a unique force in modern
jazz labeled as "the next big thing on his instrument" by All About
Jazz, accompanied by the Melton Mustafa Orchestra. Other featured artists
include LeNard Rutledge, named Best Jazz Artist by the Miami New Times, and
celebrated vocalists Brenda Alford and Rochelle Lightfoot.

On
Sunday, Trump International Beach Resort, located at 18001 Collins Avenue, will
host a Jazz Brunch pairing a menu of savory Southern cuisine with soulful jazz
to close the weekend festivities.

Visitors
and residents alike are invited to enjoy one of Miami's most vibrant music
festivals, with a jam-packed weekend of live music, culinary experiences and
white sand beaches to enjoy.

The 7th
Annual Sunny Isles Beach Jazz Fest is made possible with the support of the
Miami-Dade County Tourist Development Council, the Miami-Dade County Department
of Cultural Affairs, the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor
and Board of County Commissioners.

The
event will benefit the Joshua's Heart Foundation, which aims to empower those
in need and to improve their quality of life. This non-profit organization
provides items of basic necessity, including food and water. The foundation
also engages and educates communities at home and abroad about how to take
steps towards fighting hunger and poverty on a global scale.

Sunny
Isles Beach is ideally positioned to take advantage of everything South Florida
has to offer. This eclectic destination nestled between Miami and Ft.
Lauderdale is part laid-back coastal city, and part luxury resort and shopping
mecca. Whether visitors are looking for a warm-weather holiday centered around
golf or tennis, a family vacation with great activities for the kids, or an
extraordinary and romantic wedding or honeymoon destination, look no further
than Sunny Isles Beach.

Love
Supreme Collective is the Ropeadope debut by Billboard chart-topping
saxophonist Frank Catalano and longtime Smashing Pumpkins drummer Jimmy
Chamberlin. Chicago-based Catalano and Chamberlin met in 1999 at the former
Boulevard Cafe in Chicago's Logan Square neighborhood during a jam session that
Catalano was hosting. On that night, the jam included John Medeski, DJ Logic,
Steve Kimock, Les Claypool and Sugar Blue. Catalano and Chamberlin started
playing together soon after for fun, mostly at each other's houses with the exception
of a few Jimmy Chamberlin Complex performances.

"I
have been a fan and friend of Frank's for fifteen years and I am happy we are
making music together," Chamberlin says. This collaboration has enabled
Chamberlin to reconnect with his jazz roots. Fans of Chamberlin's drumming will
be delighted to hear him in this context, as he demonstrates an inspired range
of depth in his playing. "Jimmy is my favorite drummer and I think of him
like he's my big brother," Catalano says. "We played together at the
Green Mill in Chicago recently and I still have the music running through my
body. It was so special, words can't properly express my feelings."

While
Catalano has nothing but joy and positive feelings for the music on Love
Supreme Collective, this inspired album has its genesis in difficult
circumstances. In 2011, Catalano sustained serious injuries after his car was
hit by a drunk driver. He cites John Coltrane's A Love Supreme as the spiritual
anchor during his difficult recovery. Catalano wanted to make a recording that
embodied the love, thanks, and praise of A Love Supreme without copying it.
Catalano was fortunate to have worked with A Love Supreme's legendary drummer,
Elvin Jones, who Chamberlin cites as one of his biggest influences. As such,
the passion felt for the material on this recording is easily apparent.

For this
project, Chamberlin enlisted his keyboardist from the Jimmy Chamberlin Complex,
Adam Benjamin (Kneebody), and Catalano rounded up PolCat members Percy Jones
(Brand X, Soft Machine) and Chris Poland (Megadeth) for the bass and guitar
work, respectively.

"This
recording is about crafting emotions and feelings," Catalano says.
"The way the guys set the tone and mood for each song is pretty unreal.
Love Supreme Collective resembles a through composed contemporary classical
piece with four movements."

At
Catalano's request, Ropeadope is selling the recording on iTunes as an
"all or nothing," album, because, as Catalano says, "I didn't
want this work separated and fragmented. While I am very proud of my recordings
for the Savoy and Delmark labels, this is the first time I used my classical
composition training to frame the work of a recording. This freed me to keep
Coltrane, Von Freeman and other spiritual energy near my heart and under my
fingers."

Catalano
is at a stage of his career as an established veteran in the Chicago jazz scene
where he often hears questions regarding the direction of his music and career:
What is important? What are you working to achieve? Are you happy with your
situation? What are you going after? With Love Supreme Collective, Catalano
chooses to answer these questions through his music. "It is easy to say
words," he says, "but to express these emotions, thoughts, feelings
in an instrumental album is something else. 'Psalm for John' is probably the most
special on a personal level. A psalm can help inculcate belief in divine
providence into one's consciousness. Percy Jones and I are bending our bass and
soprano sax notes together at the same time, without discussing it, playing off
each other, as if our minds are being fed this info. We did not filter or limit
the music in any way. It was a very
powerful and spiritual experience. I want to thank everyone who is reading
these words and checking out the music!"

Acclaimed
vocalist Hilary Gardner grew up in Alaska, infatuated with New York City. Her striking recording debut, The Great City,
available on Anzic Records, is Gardner's love letter to her adopted
hometown, great metropolises everywhere, and the big dreams they represent. The
Great City is graceful, intimate and sophisticated, recalling classic records
by Peggy Lee, Julie London, and Ella Fitzgerald. The album's program of songs
is refreshingly broad, featuring songs both urban and urbane by composers such
as Leonard Cohen, Vernon Duke, Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, and Nellie McKay,
among others. "I wanted to acknowledge the breadth of musical influences in
my life while still making a cohesive musical statement," Hilary said.
Elaborating on the title track, Hilary added, "I first heard this song
sung by a very young Shirley Horn, and it immediately solidified and clarified
what this album was going to be about. Funnily (appropriately!) enough, I was
on the subway listening on headphones when this song came on for the first
time. I had already been picking songs for the album, but as soon as I heard
the first 'A' section of 'The Great City,' I knew I'd found the title track and
thematic centerpiece of my record."

The
Great City was recorded at Systems Two in Brooklyn under the guidance of
Grammy-winning producer Eli Wolf, and features musical accompaniment and solos
by friends and NYC jazz mainstays, Ehud Asherie (piano), Randy Napoleon
(guitar), Elias Bailey (bass), Jerome Jennings (drums), Jason Marshall
(saxophone), Tatum Greenblatt (trumpet) and Jon Cowherd (organ).

Hilary
opens the recording with the beautifully melancholy, "No One After
You", which Hilary first heard on Anjani's Blue Alert during an insomnia
filled summer living in Spanish Harlem. "I immediately felt drawn to 'No
One After You' because it evoked such strong memories of that time in my life:
living uptown and waiting tables while trying to make this music thing happen,
getting my heart broken, etc.," said Hilary. In 2010, Hilary was chosen by
the Frank Sinatra estate to appear as the live, onstage singer in Tony-award
winner Twyla Tharp's Come Fly Away.Backed by a 19-piece big band, Hilary sang solos and duets with Frank
Sinatra's voice in a performance hailed by critics as "wonderful"
(Huffington Post), "elegant" (USA Today), and "terrific"
(The New York Observer). So in a way Frank Sinatra gave Hilary Gardner her
first big break, and "Brooklyn Bridge" (Sinatra premiered this
Cahn/Styne song in the 1947 film, It Happened In Brooklyn), is Hilary's nod to
Ol' Blue Eyes. "Aside from the fact that I immediately fell in love with
the charm and sweetness of this song, I also knew I had to tip my proverbial
hat to Frank Sinatra on my record." Hilary's bittersweet rendition of
"Autumn In New York" is both luxurious and filled with longing. She
reinvigorates Vernon Duke's classic standard with understated elegance.
"The line, '. . . looking down on the city I hate and adore . . .' gave me
goose bumps the first time I heard it, because it's so true. I love how urbane
this whole lyric is, and it was really important to me that we recorded both
full choruses so the entire lyric would be heard. Vernon Duke! He wrote the
music and lyrics for this song in 1937, and I think it's the most elegant
summation of the complexity of loving this city. I was so inspired by Billie
Holiday's recording of this song, which is stop-you-in-your-tracks perfection.
Her interpretation is so incredibly deep and subtle," said Hilary.

Other
highlights on The Great City include Hilary's version of "Drunk On The
Moon," the late-night ballad by Tom Waits (who Hilary fell in love with at
age 12), evoking the original's snapshot of blue smoke curling around neon
signs and the beauty of the urban underbelly. "This song is how the city
feels after a long night, coming home after a very late gig," commented
Hilary; "Sweetheart", inspired by Dan Hicks, and featuring Tatum Greenblatt
on trumpet, who Hilary met while playing with Valery Ponomarev's big band
together (along with Jason Marshall and Jerome Jennings); "You Came a Long
Way From St. Louis" and "(Ah, the Apple Trees) When the World Was
Young", both inspired by Anita O'Day; "This Little Town Is
Paris," which represents Hilary's knack for finding relatively unknown
gems that deserve to be heard. "The composer, Milton Schwartz, is a total
mystery! I searched for any information about him, and came up with bupkis. Not
even Jonathan Schwartz (legendary WNYC DJ, no relation) had any info. But what
a little gem of a tune. A beautiful melody, a charming lyric . . . this is one
of my favorite moments on the record," said Hilary.

The
album concludes with poise and poignancy on "Manhattan Avenue."Here, supported by Ehud Asherie's virtuosic
piano accompaniment, Hilary interprets the gritty, contemporary lyric with
sophisticated intimacy.The simple grace
of the song's arrangement is a tribute to the telepathic interplay between
Teddy Wilson and Billie Holiday. That juxtaposition of sensibilities, timeless
musicality melded with an in-the-now sentiment, poetically sums up The Great
City. "We knew right away that 'Manhattan Avenue' would close the album,
especially with the last line: Oh, but dreams come true/on Manhattan
Avenue.That's really the message of the
album," Hilary says. "This city is complicated, frustrating, and
magical, and dreams do come true here. They certainly have for me."

Hilary
Gardner performs as a leader throughout New York City, appearing regularly at
Birdland, Café Carlyle, Symphony Space, and Jazz at Kitano.She is a frequent soloist with symphonies
throughout the United States and has appeared with Connecticut's Ridgefield
Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, and New York's Rochester Philharmonic.
Multi-platinum recording artist Moby featured Hilary prominently on his 2009
release, Wait For Me (Mute Records/EMI). Most recently Hilary has been touring
with the new vocal super-group Duchess, featuring fellow vocalists, and Anzic
label-mates Amy Cervini and Melissa Stylianou. The group has just kicked off a
three month residency at The 55 Bar, and will be releasing their debut album in
early 2015, on Anzic Records.

The
piano-bass-drums trio has been given new life in jazz in recent years by the
Bad Plus, Brad Mehldau and the late Esbjorn Svensson in EST. While Travis
Wesley’s previous CD Natural Diversion paid tribute to such pianists as Red
Garland, Wynton Kelly, Erroll Garner and Ahmad Jamal, Cycle By Three is a giant
step forward. His playing is strikingly original and his interplay with bassist
Toby Curtright and drummer Tom Marko during a program filled with colorful
originals is consistently impressive.

“The music
crosses over several genres,” says Wesley, “and I hope that it will be
attractive not just to jazz enthusiasts but to many others. We wanted to
modernize the sound of the piano trio, break some rules and display our own
artistic voices. Drummer Tom Marko is very supportive, solid, and his musical
comments are tasty and stylistically appropriate. Toby Curtright’s approach to
the bass lies somewhere between the sounds of Scott LaFaro and Jaco Pastorius.
His sound is perfect for this group’s concept.” Many of the selections have
Wesley’s left hand and bassist Curtright stating the melodies together, giving
the group an easily identifiable sound.

The
pianist contributed six pieces to Cycle By Three. “Prelude” and “Postlude”
bookend the set with identical themes (based off of Chopin’s “Prelude in E
Minor #4″) that are interpreted in different ways. “Keeper Of Keys” has a
melody line inspired by Bach, a floating quality and a backbeat that brings the
piece to a climax. “Fading Friends” features the creative use of a hip hop
groove that is soulful, joyful and a bit funky while still including a lot of
improvisation. “Song For Madelynne” (dedicated to Wesley’s daughter) is the
longest piece of the set. It has a catchy background and a creative drum solo
by Marko. “Memoriam” is a hyper and inventive performance dedicated to Esbjorn
Svensson and EST.

Bassist
Toby Curtright brought in two songs that are also on Cycle By Three. Both
works, “But He Himself Was Broken” and “For Us, This Is The End Of All
Stories,” are instrumentals that have religious themes. The former uses
Curtright’s bowed bass and repetitious figures from the piano very effectively
while the latter is a ballad that is reminiscent of Pat Metheny in its
harmonies. Also included on Cycle By Three is a lyrical, modernized and quietly
emotional version of the Rodgers & Hart classic ”Spring Is Here.”

Travis
Wesley was born and raised in Bloomington, Illinois. He began taking piano
lessons when he was ten and, although he was most interested in classic rock at
the time, he soon discovered jazz through his piano teacher. “Jazz is where I
come from. The commitment and artistry that it takes to be able to play it is a
lifelong pursuit. It is the deepest form
of artistic expression that there is.”

Wesley
attended the Berklee College of Music for a year, earned a Bachelors degree in
music from Eastern Illinois University, completed his Masters in 2005 and
recently earned his doctorate. Wesley worked with saxophonist Willie Akins in
St. Louis during 2004-05, became a well respected educator and has led his own
groups for years in addition to appearing with some of the top musicians of the
Midwest.

While
Travis Welsey’s playing on 2012′s Natural Diversion showed his roots, Cycle By
Three displays his individuality and creativity. This colorful and inventive
set points the way towards the piano trio of the future.

Monday, September 29, 2014

A son of
pianist and educator Ellis Marsalis and his wife Dolores, Jason began sitting
in with his father’s jazz group at a young age, and eventually became a steady
member of the band. He attended the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts
High School and continued to develop his skills by playing gigs with his father
and brothers, Wynton, Branford and Delfeayo. Marsalis’s touring career bloomed
after high school when he performed with jazz pianist Marcus Roberts. Despite
his heavy tour schedule, Marsalis attended Loyola University in New Orleans and
studied composition with Roger Dickerson.

“Jason
continues to inspire people worldwide with his mastery as an artist and an
educator,” said John Wittmann, director of Artist Relations and Education,
Yamaha Artist Services Indianapolis. “With his exceptional skill on jazz
vibraphone and international exposure, we look forward to a long, fruitful
relationship.”

Marsalis
has recorded, performed, or toured with a wide variety of artists, including
Joe Henderson, Lionel Hampton, Casa Samba, Dr. Michael White, Ellis Marsalis,
Thelonious Monk, Aretha Franklin, Christian Fabien and his own Latin-jazz group
Los Hombres Calientes, among others. Marsalis and the entire Marsalis family
received the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters award in 2009, and
appeared at the White House and the Kennedy Center in tributes to his father
Ellis.

"Yamaha
has always been reliable with instruments and the vibraphone is no exception to
this,” said Marsalis, who performs with Yamaha’s three octave Gold Professional
Gold Tour Vibraphone model, YV-3710 with a matte finish. “The instrument has a
great, warm sound and is very comfortable to play.”

A really
wonderful first album from Anthony Perkins – cut years before he shocked the
screen in Psycho, at a time when he was arguably more committed to his role as
a singer! Perkins is surprisingly great throughout – with a mellow, masculine
approach that's a bit like Matt Dennis at the time – never overdone, but with
just the right sort of inflections to really personalize the music. Tony never
tries to belt it out of the park, and that's what we really like about the
record – in that he's a much more honest, understated singer – a nice contrast
to some of the more emotive talents on the charts at the time. Marty Paich
provides the backing – in a great jazzy style that's similar to his work with
Mel Torme – and titles include "April Fool", "Hit The Road To
Dreamland", "How Long Has This Been Going On", "But
Beautiful", "I Wish I Knew", "Accidents Will Happen",
and "Better Luck Next Time". CD features 7 more bonus tracks too –
including "If You Were The Only Girl", "If You'll Be Mine",
"Melody For Lovers", "Fool In Love", and "A Little
Love Can Go A Long Long Way". ~ Dusty Groove

PAUL
BRUSGER – WAITING FOR NEXT TIME

Bassist
Paul Brusger heads up this quartet, but the group's got strong contributions on
all its four corners – tremendous baritone work from Gary Smulyan, who's
becoming one of our favorite contemporary players on the instrument – plus
soulful piano from Mike Ledonne, and just the right sort of swing from the
great Louis Hayes! The players come together with a freshness that's noteworthy
– really standing apart from even their other recent recordings – quite
possibly due to the fact that every tune on the set (save one) is an original
composition by Brusger, a writer with a really old school way of balancing
lyricism and soul – a compositional strength that almost takes us back to
Horace Silver or Duke Pearson. Titles include "In A Minor Funk",
"When Will You Ever Learn", "All But One", "Bringin
Home The Silver", "Waiting For The Next Trane", and
"Andrea's Delight". ~ Dusty Groove

BALLISTER
– BOTH ENDS

Maybe
one of the most vibrant musical performances ever from the Ballister trio – for
reasons that are recorded in the notes on the album – a stunning collaboration
between Dave Rempis on alto and tenor, Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello and
electronics, and Paal Nilssen-Love on drums and percussion! The players have a
great way of swinging between sound and space – really letting things out to
create the right sort of suspense, then bounding back in with the sort of bold
energy that really feeds their fire – almost with a sensitivity that's
surprising, given the situation! The album features one long live performance –
divided up into "Front" and "Back" passages. (Yellow vinyl
pressing, too!) ~ Dusty Groove

Super
Bad is right! This is hard-hitting funky James – from the badass cover right
down to the extended tracks on the record, which point the way towards the hard
live jamming of the classic Payback years! Everything wonderful is in place on
the set – from the band's grooves at the bottom to James' on-fire vocals on the
top – heard beautifully on the extended 10 minute version of the title cut
"Super Bad" – which rolls through parts 1, 2, and 3 of the song! The
album also includes another 10 minute funky cut – "Giving Out of
Juice" – plus the classic "A Man Has to Go Back to the
Crossroads", and three mellower ballads, but even they end up sounding
kind of hip! ~ Dusty Groove

THE
BAR-KAYS – TOO HOT TO STOP

A
pivotal album from The Bar-Kays – a key post-Stax set, but one that's still
very firmly grounded in Memphis funk! The groove definitely shows a bit more
polish than before – the same sort of shift the Ohio Players made after moving
to Mercury Records – but as with the Players at their best, there's still
plenty of sharp edges and deeply funky moments on the record – and if anything,
the shift has really given The Bar-Kays a way to evolve their sound past some
of the heavier modes of the early days, without losing any of the appeal of
their groove! Some cuts have some great keyboards – almost producing a spacey
funk feel at points – and titles include "Too Hot To Stop (part 1)",
"You're So Sexy", "Cozy", "Spellbound",
"Whitehouseorgy", and the nice mellow track "Summer Of Our
Love". ~ Dusty Groove

NORTHERN SOUL - THE SOUNDTRACK (COMPILATION)

A
stunner of a soul set – put together to support the film on England's Northern
Soul scene! The package is worth it for the music alone – a massive 54 tracks
that stand together as one of the sweetest Northern Soul collections we've seen
in years – a really great choice of material that mixes classics from the scene
with the sort of newly-discovered gems that have really kept the scene going
for far longer than anyone might have expected back in the 60s and 70s. All
work here is of late 60s vintage, and titles include "I Gotta Find Me
Somebody" by The Vel Vets, "Crying Over You" by Duke Browner,
"Exus Trek" by Luther Ingram Orchestra, "Your Autumn Of Tomorrow"
by The Crow, "Come On Train" by Don Thomas, "It Really Hurts Me
Girl" by The Carstairs, "I Was Born To Love You" by Herbert
Hunter, "She'll Come Running Back" by Mel Britt, "Little Love
Affair" by Patrinelle Staten, and "You Don't Love Me" by Epitome
Of Sound. And if that's not enough, the set also includes a bonus DVD – with an
interview with Elaine Constantine, director of the film – plus an audio
interview with legendary Northern Soul DJ Richard Sterling, and a slide show of
his most cherished relics from the scene in the 70s. ~ Dusty Groove

A really
tremendous album from the legendary Gil Scott-Heron – and a set that stands as
one of his greatest statements from the 70s! The record is a wonderful example
of Gil's work in two different styles – sweet mellow jazzy soul, and harder
heavier protest poetry – the latter from his roots as a writer in touch with
the streets, and the former part of a brilliant new direction that he was
taking on the Flying Dutchman label. Side one features classic jazzy tracks
recorded with Brian Jackson – like "Free Will", "The Middle Of
Your Days", "Speed Kills", and "Did You Hear What They Said?".
Side two moves over to a much sparer sound – and has Gil reciting some of his
poetry with very heavy percussion, and a very righteous approach. The wisdom
and knowledge of those pieces is a perfect example of the kinds of issues that
were haunting black America in the early 70s – especially on the tracks
"No Knock", "The King Alfred Plan", and "Sex
Education: Ghetto Style". CD features 11 stunning bonus tracks –
alternates of songs on the album, and some very cool "breakdown"
tracks as well! ~ Dusty Groove

SONNY ROLLINS - AFTER THE BRIDGE

Rare
work from the RCA years of Sonny Rollins – all recorded during the time of his
groundbreaking albums for the label in the early 60s, but never issued until
this much later Japanese package! The title is quite apt – as the whole set
really shows the development that Rollins brought to his music in the years
after his classic album The Bridge – that open, freely expressive sound that
took his already-great approach to tenor and really pushed it into something
new – a bold, fresh style for the 60s that was full of power and freedom, but
which took a very different direction than the music of John Coltrane or Archie
Shepp. Music runs from bop standards to more thoughtful compositions – and even
in the mellow moments, Rollins is really mindblowing – working in small group
settings with players who include Herbie Hancock on piano, Jim Hall on guitar,
Thad Jones on cornet, and either Ron Carter or David Izenzon on bass. Titles
include "Afternoon In Paris", "Now's The Time", "I
Remember Clifford", "Django", "When You Wish Upon A
Star", "Travelin Light", and "Four". ~ Dusty Groove

SAM DEES - TAKE ONE: ORIGIN OF TWELVE 70s SOUL MASTERPIECES

Sam Dees
was one of the greatest unsung talents in 70s soul music – an important writer,
arranger, and general background talent who helped so many other singers hit
the heights – but who hardly ever issued much work under his own name! Apart
from key singles and an important album on Atlantic, the recorded legacy of
Dees isn't what it should be – given his impact on music, especially deep soul
– but fortunately, sets like this have come along to correct that lack! As part
of Sam's creative process, he would often record songs first on his own – not
as rough demo tracks, but as surprisingly well done studio versions to
illustrate the material – tracks that were often better than later versions of
his tunes, and most of the other commercial soul on the market. This sweet set
brings together 12 of those tracks – private recordings from Sam, of songs he'd
later give to singers like Loletta Holloway, Ben E King, and others – an
essential record from the great Dees, pressed up on super-heavy vinyl! Titles
include the previously unissued "Married But Not To Each Other" –
plus "Good Guys Don't Always Win", "Who Are You Gonna
Love", "Con Me", "Only Lonely People", "False
Alarms", "Standing In The Wings Of A Heartache", "The World
Don't Owe You Nothing", and "Black Tattler". ~ Dusty Groove

Friday, September 26, 2014

It’s been 3 months since the release of
Gina Carey’s first single “Through the Waters”, and now Gico Music is proud to
announce the second single from her upcoming CD, “ The Soulful Collection of
Gina Carey”, “Eyes of a Child” on October 1st .

Gina
Carey’s “Eyes of a Child” is a smooth soulful mid tempo ballad loaded with
intense emotion and deep powerful lyrics. “Eyes of a Child” talks about the
importance of not losing the ability to pursue ones lifelong dreams, and
challenges listeners to see life once again through the eyes of a child.

“Eyes of a Child” was both written and
produced by Gina Carey. Her husband, Recording Artist / Guitarist John Carey,
contributed live bass and guitar. The single was recorded in Palm Desert
California at the Gico Music Production Studios.

Throughout
Gina Carey’s singing career, she has recorded 10 independently released CD’s
including her latest two singles “Through the Waters” and “Eyes of a
Child”. Both singles “Through the
Waters” and “Eyes of a Child” are following the footsteps of her 2011 CD
release “Melodic”. Melodic” made its way to the #1 spot on the UK Soul Charts.

Gina Carey’s two latest singles, “Through the
Waters” and “Eyes of a Child “seem to be trending the same manner as “Melodic”.
Her first single “Through the Waters” from her upcoming CD “The Soulful
Collection of Gina Carey” has already landed the #4 spot on the UK’s
Danceteria’s Phatt 50 Charts and, although Gina Carey’s new single “Eyes of a
Child” has not yet been released, it is also gaining superlative reviews and
generous portions of Radio support.

“The
Soulful Collection of Gina Carey” along with her two latest singles” will be
released in March of 2015, however, “Eyes of a Child” will be available for
digital download on October 1, 2014. “Through the Waters” is currently
available.

Classic
jazz is not unfamiliar to Lourdes Duque Baron as her first album entitled
“Feeling Good At Any Age” contained classic cover songs with a contemporary
twist. But her debut single from her new upcoming EP My Spring In Paris is a
first glimpse at her original music talent. Teaming up again with producer
Andrew Lane, who also produced Baron’s last album and who also frequently
collaborates with jazz music royalty Ron Ellington Shy, Baron winds up with a
mellow, whimsical single that recalls the passionate late-night European
sophistication of traditional jazz mixed with a contemporary sound. Listen to
My Spring In Paris here.

“My
Spring In Paris” is a song Lane co-wrote a few years back with artist Maya
Tremblay and shelved until the right music artist came along to record it. He
chose this song for Baron because of “her worldliness and her deep vocal
sound.” Lane also happened to compose the arrangement. It's not just the sound,
it's the emotion and feel of the song…very '60s standards like Frank Sinatra’s
“We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye" or Burt Bacharach's "Walk on By",
classic and romantic jazz songs.

If any
music could be called accessible it's this, with its warm intimacy and classic
good taste. Baron’s look and sound has been referred to as ‘timeless.’ This new
single is a masterpiece and could very well prove to be so. After all, some things
are timeless for a reason; they need no updating, only replicating. Time will
tell. "My Spring In Paris" is now available on iTunes, Amazon and
MTV.

Lourdes
Duque Baron's other projects include her two bestselling books "Scripted
In Heaven" and "I Called Myself Cassandra," as well as her
upcoming feature film in development, an adaptation of her book "Scripted
In Heaven."

Behind every musical overnight sensation are years
of toiling away in rehearsal halls, recording studios and sweaty nightclubs
meticulously honing one’s craft. In trumpeter Joey Sommerville’s case, it’s
more than two decades of writing, recording and touring to cultivate his
following and establish his presence on the national scene. On October 28, the
award-winning soul-jazz musician, songwriter and producer will release a new
collection of songs that he’s been working on as far back as 1993 that will
comprise his fifth album, “Overnight Sensation,” slated for release on his
Jayvox imprint. The title track will crank up the party when it is serviced to
radio stations for airplay at the end of this month.

Sommerville’s
forte is serving as an impresario of fun and funky frolics and pretty harmonies
that touch the heart. He wrote or co-wrote nine of the disc’s ten tracks and
produced the entire session sharing production duties on two cuts with fusion
icon Jeff Lorber. Like a ringmaster who skillfully unifies the eclectic acts of
a three-ring circus, the trumpeter who also plays flugelhorn, piano, keyboards,
synth bass and drum programming on the record has scripted a colorful
collection of short stories with his horn serving as the common thread binding
gripping chapters in contemporary and straight-ahead jazz, R&B, hip hop and
rock.

“In this
era of singles downloads, I still believe in the concept of albums and a
cohesive body of music,” said the Atlanta, Georgia-based Sommerville, who will
perform at an album launch gig there on October 30 at the Suite Food Lounge.
“I’ve always wanted to record these songs and I really like them, but they
didn’t fit on previous projects. They were all inspired by real life
experiences thus they have meaning. The long journey that is a music career is
a marathon, not a sprint, and the timing finally came around for these songs to
be recorded for the first time. Surprisingly, they fit together despite being
written over a long period of time and the variety in their sound and style.”

Sommerville’s
trumpet seduces on the sensuous “Desire” highlighted by gossamer guitar from
legend Earl Klugh. Venturing in a divergent tangent, Sommerville tosses a bone
to Jeff Bradshaw on a raucous and imaginative take on “Caravan,” a
scintillating thrill ride that Duke Ellington never would have seen coming.
“Red Cups Up” is a playful party anthem while Sommerville surprises when he
steps to the mic on the stunner “I Just Wanna Be With You” on which his husky
voice quivers and cracks with raw emotion while crooning an autobiographic
story of romance to his wife. A spiraling Lorber groove, “The Next Big Thing”
is a tightly-wound R&B-jazz-funk mélange illumined by Sommerville’s trumpet
and quirky synth along with a touch of sax from Elan Trotman. The elegiac
“Rebecca of Birmingham” was penned years ago after Sommerville’s grandmother
passed and is graced by a stirring blues-jazz guitar eulogy from Eric Essix.
“Karma” induces reflection during the straight-ahead jazz exercise after which
Sommerville closes the album with the throwback R&B instrumental “Forever”
followed by the boisterous “The Passport Life.”

A
spotlight soloist on the Grammy-nominated and Juno Award-winning album
“Alegria” by Cirque du Soleil, Sommerville’s 2007 release “Like You Mean It”
won the American Society of Young Musician’s All That Jazz Award in 2009. His
trumpet artistry was featured on Hidden Beach Recordings’ “Unwrapped Volume 4”
and he’s written and produced a Top 20 single for Bob Baldwin and an album by Rhonda
Smith that features performances by Prince, Sheila E. and gospel icon Fred
Hammond. Sommerville is a high-octane performer who is a regular at festivals
and on music cruises. Outside of music, he can be heard voicing spots for BMW,
Coke, Ford, the U.S. Army and more.

The music
of Duke Jordan, but in a really fresh setting – handled here by altoist Chris
Byars, who's brought together a compelling lineup for the set! Many of these
tracks are numbers you'll either know as bop standards, or from Jordan's trio
recordings – but the approach here is quite inventive, and makes the record way
more than just a tribute – in the creative style of Byars' previous projects
dedicated to Gigi Gryce or Lucky Thompson. Chris opens up the tunes with
instrumentation that includes bass clarinet from Stefano Doglioni, trombone
from John Mosca, and guitar from Pasquale Grasso – as well as vocals from
singer Yaala Ballin, who composed lyrics for two Jordan tracks – "If I Did
Would You" and "Lesson In Love" – which are nestled nicely next
to instrumentals that include "Jordanish", "Undecided Lady",
"There's A Star For You", "Glad I Met Pat", and "The
Bullet". ~ Dusty Groove

MICHAEL COCHRANE - DISCOVERY

Wonderfully
warm work from the great Michael Cochrane – a pianist we always love, and who
also seems to be playing a bit of Fender Rhodes on this album too! The
instrument's not credited on the back, but turns up in an excellent version of
Denny Zeitlin's "Quiet Now" – which is handled by Cochrane with just
the right sort of space and tone to really open up the composition – in a way
that's very different from the bolder, more soulful tones the pianist uses
throughout the rest of the album. As always with a record from Michael, the
original tunes are some of the best – and include "Discovery",
"MC's Bossa", "Erie Blues", and "Fantasy" – all
the kind of numbers that always have us digging for his records whenever we get
the chance. Other tunes include "Oblivion", "Yesterdays",
and "Visitation" – and the trio includes Daryl Johns on bass and
Steve Johns on drums. ~ Dusty
Groove

BERNARD PURDIE - PURDIE GOOD!

Bernard
Purdie's first album as a leader for Prestige – cut right after he'd hipped up
plenty of other sessions for the label with his famous funky drums! The groove
here is very much in the best Prestige jazz funk mode of the early 70s –
tightly vamping rhythms that draw heavily from Purdie's monstrous drums – and
which also offer solo showcase space for Harold Wheeler on electric piano, Ted
Dunbar on guitar, Tippy Larkin on trumpet, and Charlie Brown and Warren Daniels
on tenor. Rhythm is augmented by Gordon Edwards on Fender bass and Norman Pride
on congas – and the grooves hit a variety of modes that show that Purdie could
sometimes be a more open-thinking rhythmatist than his funky contemporary Idris
Muhammad. Titles include great instrumental versions of "Cold Sweat"
and "Montego Bay", plus the originals "Wasteland",
"You Turn Me On", and "Purdie Good". ~ Dusty Groove

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Avid's
Three Classic Albums Plus places tenor sax player Dexter Gordon's two
Bethlehem-led dates from 1955 -- Daddy Plays the Horn and Dexter Blows Hot and
Cool -- in the company of his 1960 comeback The Resurgence of Dexter Gordon (on
which he appears on most, but not all of the tracks) as well as six of seven
cuts from Stan Levey's excellent Bethlehem session, This Time the Drum's on Me,
which is also from 1955. The liner notes from the original albums and complete
session attributions are provided in the booklet. Prospective buyers should
consider a couple of things before dropping money: first, the "remastered
sound" in this budget package is not from analog source tapes, but either
from LPs or perhaps even MP3s since there are audible clicks. Secondly, given
that the U.K.'s copyright laws are different from Gordon's American ones, these
are in the former's public domain, and there is no financial remuneration to
the artist's estate. It's true that the music is great and this is certainly
inexpensive, but the adage "you get what you pay for" also applies.
Those who wish to investigate Gordon's early dates as a leader would be well
advised to seek out the American recordings first. They contain much better
sound and royalties actually get paid. ~ Thom Jurek

CARMEN MCRAE - BOOK OF BALLADS

Carmen
McRae's book of ballads is a great set of standards – performed by a core trio
that features Don Abney on piano, over larger backings by Frank Hunter! The
set's a treasure from Carmen's early years – and is filled with dusky
renditions of tunes that are familiar, but which have a very different feeling
here – thanks to McRae's sense of care and space with the material – one that
almost brings a personal, reflective quality to the whole thing. Titles include
"He Was Too Good To Me", "By Myself", "My
Romance", "When I Fall In Love", and "Please Be
Kind". ~ Dusty Groove

BARRY MANILOW - MY DREAM DUETS

For his
Verve Music debut My Dream Duets, Manilow demonstrates that he is a fan
celebrating his own musical heroes who have inspired him through the years.
From cherished idols like Andy Williams, Sammy Davis Jr, Dusty Springfield,
Mama Cass, Jimmy Durante, Marilyn Monroe, Frankie Lyman, Judy Garland and Louis
Armstrong to contemporary icons like Whitney Houston and John Denver. Barry has
joined together with them in his recording studio, emerging with a collection
of remarkable duet classics. Here’s the official description of Barry Manilow's
My Dream Duets is as follows: "For his Verve Music debut My Dream Duets,
Manilow demonstrates that he is a fan celebrating his own musical heroes who
have inspired him through the years. From cherished idols like Judy Garland and
Louis Armstrong to contemporary icons like Whitney Houston and John Denver.
Barry has joined together with them in his recording studio, emerging with a
collection of remarkable duet classics. Although the extraordinary guest
artists on My Dream Duetss are no longer with us, Manilow's mission is to ensure
their immortal voices live on to excite and entertain all generations of music
lovers." Barry Manilow's My Dream Duets will be released on October 28.

Diana’s
condition has become much more chronic than first anticipated, and she is
unable to travel or engage in any promotional or touring activities for at
least another 6 weeks to 2 months.

Mrs.
Krall is extremely disappointed to have to announce this today, but also
realizes that, upon advice of her doctors, this is the only course of action
available to her at this time to ensure a full recovery.

“I’m
deeply saddened that I will have to postpone the release of my new album
‘Wallflower” and the “Wallflower U.S Fall Tour” until next year. I’ve been
battling a severe case of pneumonia and am under doctor’s orders to rest for
the next few months in order to regain my strength and good health.

Performing
is both a privilege and a joy for me. When I go out on stage I want to be able
to give it everything. Taking this time to rest and recuperate will allow me to
do that. It is frustrating to be so close to the record release and have to
delay but I am very proud of this record and want to be able to give you all my
very best when we finally present this music to you. Thank you so much for your
understanding.” – Diana Krall

New tour
dates for the “Wallflower World Tour” will be announced in the coming weeks.
Please stay tuned for further information or visit www.dianakrall.com

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Two bona fide guitar heroes in their respective fields – Eric
Johnson in the rock realm and Mike Stern in the jazz
world – go toe-to-toe on Eclectic, a scintillating
musical showcase that brings together their disparate influences in one potent
package. Guitar aficionados of all stripes will stand slack-jawed hearing these
formidable six-stringers exchanging high octane licks on Stern’s funky “Roll
With It” and Johnson’s cruising pop anthem “Hullabaloo” (a kind of answer to his
catchy GRAMMY®-winning rock instrumental “Cliffs of Dover” from the
platinum-selling 1990 album Ah Via Musicom). The two dip into a jazzy
bag on Eric’s “Tidal” (a tribute to his own personal guitar hero, Wes
Montgomery) and on Mike’s surging modal romp “Remember” (patterned after John
Coltrane’s “Impressions” with some allusions to Jimi Hendrix’s “Third Stone From
the Sun”). More fretboard flights ensue on Johnson’s jazzy “Benny Man’s Blues”
(a kind of ode to Benny Goodman and Charlie Christian) and on Stern’s dark,
slow-grooving “You Never Know.” And it is somehow fitting that these two sons of
Jimi close out this six-string extravaganza with a scorching rendition of the
famous Hendrix blues, “Red House,” with each of them trading vocal choruses. “It
was my singing debut,” says Stern. “I sang the first verse and Eric sang the
second verse, then he sings the first two lines of the third verse and I sing
the last two lines of the third verse.” (Stern also sneaks in a quote from
Jimi’s “Third Stone From the Sun” on a smoking rendition of “Dry Ice,” an
Electromagnets tune which Eric revived for this session). Sterns sums up the
project by saying, “This whole record, even though we did it in the studio, was
really recorded live. A couple of things were fixed but there was that
spontaneous quality which is what we were looking for and I definitely think
that's what we got. I really dig the way this record came out. It has a lot of
energy and a lot of musicality.”Recorded at Johnson’s studio in his native Austin, Texas,
Eclectic, scheduled for release on October 28, 2014 on
Heads Up International, a division of Concord Music Group, is anchored by the
flexible rhythm tandem of drummer Anton Fig (a longstanding
member in the Paul Shaffer-led house band of Late Night With David
Letterman) and Johnson’s regular bassist Chris Maresh, who
also contributes the open-ended Bitches Brew flavored “Bigfoot.” Special guests
on this three-day session include Austin’s resident soul man Malford
Milligan, who sings with gravelly-voiced gusto on the opening “Roll
With It.” “He’s just awesome,” says Johnson. “Malford’s got so much vibe it
doesn’t matter what he sings. He just puts magic on everything.” Mike’s wife
Leni Stern also provides vocals and plays n’goni (an African
stringed instrument) on intros to “Bigfoot” and “Wherever You Go.”
Christopher Cross (the GRAMMY® Award-winning songwriter of
“Sailin’,” “Ride Like the Wind” and “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)” as
well as a fellow Texan and longtime friend of Johnson’s) sings backup vocals on
the bridge to Stern’s beautiful “Wishing Well” with Mike singing the verses.
Guy Forsyth lends some blues harp to “Red House.” And Johnson’s
catchy “Hullabaloo” is punched up by the horn section of saxophonist
John Mills, trombonist Mike Mordecai and
trumpeter Andrew Johnson.Not only have the two guitarists admired each other’s playing for years (Eric
heard Mike back in the ’80s with Miles Davis, and Mike first heard Eric when his
hit “Cliffs of Dover” caught on big back in 1990), they came to have a greater
appreciation of each other’s songwriting abilities during the course of the
Eclectic sessions. “I’ve been aware of Mike for years
and I was familiar with some of his playing,” says Eric, “but I wasn’t as deeply
familiar with his songwriting. As we began working together, I started going
through all his songs and I was just blown away by some of the ballads. His
tunes ‘Wishing Well’ and ‘Sometimes’ are beautiful. And his tune ‘Wherever You
Go’ is one of my favorites on the record. I think that’s another thing we have
in common: we both get turned on by and really enjoy a good song. If there’s
some kind of viable composition that’s put together in a way that emotes to
people, we’re both real fans of that and that’s why it’s exhilarating to do it.
We’re both interested and sensitive about songwriting and composition, and
consequently since we’re also so passionate about playing guitar I think we try
to figure out how to do it in a way that serves the composition. So I think what
comes out of that is just a little bit of a tension and a little bit of care and
concern about what the other person is playing. I’m constantly thinking, ‘How
can I voice what I’m playing to fit what Mike is playing? How can we make it
work in a musical way?’” And they strike a rare accord throughout
Eclectic.The seeds for this extraordinary six-string summit meeting were planted in
2009 when Johnson played on two tracks from Stern’s GRAMMY®-nominated album
Big Neighborhood. As Stern recalls, “At that session, which we also did
down in Austin, I remember us saying, ‘One of these days we should do a record
together,’ but I never thought that would happen. And then we played a gig
together at the Blue Note in New York, and it kind of went from there.” Johnson
and Stern’s week-long engagement at the Blue Note in August 2013 was preceded by
two warm-up nights at the Regattabar in Boston, where they further explored
their musical chemistry together. “It was really fun for me because we have
different priorities in our playing,” says Stern. “I’m more of a jazz player, of
course...that’s my priority and I love that stuff. But I also love rock and
blues-rock and straight blues and Motown. That’s how I came up. I started off
listening to Jimi Hendrix, Smokey Robinson, Aretha Franklin and the Jackson
Five, and of course, lots of blues. Those were my roots. And then I got more
into jazz when I was about 17. I fell in love with it. And ever since then my
priority has been with my jazz playing. But I have that other stuff that comes
out in my music. And it always has. For Eric, jazz has never has been his total
priority, although Wes Montgomery is his favorite cat. So he has a lot of that
sensibility in his playing. And as we started playing together we discovered
that we really had so much in common. So it was definitely fun.”Stern was ecstatic about getting an insider’s look at Johnson’s unique
six-string vocabulary. “The way this cat plays! I’m just beginning to figure out
what the hell he’s doing. He does these pedal steel kind of licks on guitar and
such beautiful orchestration. He picks some notes with his right hand using his
fingers and pick together. He plays a lot with his fingers and pick, and some of
the runs that he uses...the lines that he plays are very harmonically
sophisticated. He can play piano, so there’s some pianistic stuff that happens
with his comping. And he’s got Travis picking down. Plus, he’s a singer, so that
influences his phrasing on guitar. Everything he plays is really cool and
beautiful. It’s just very much Eric Johnson. He’s got his own style and it’s
amazing! And more than that, he’s just a very soulful cat. He plays with a lot
of heart and soul. And I love that!”Adds Johnson, “I was mentioning to Mike when we did this recording that it
was one of my favorite double guitar situations that I’ve ever done, because a
lot of times you do two guitar things and it’s hard for it to fit together in a
very musical, cohesive way. It can get kind of busy, where you cover each other
up. But through dynamics and listening to each other and thinking about the way
we voice chords and support each other, I think this collaboration lent itself
to being more in a musical kind of way, which has been a real nice experience
for me.”With Johnson’s warm-toned distortion licks, smooth intervallic leaps up the
fretboard and his occasional audacious wah-wah licks blending organically with
Stern’s fiery be-bop and blues-based vocabulary,
Eclectic is chockfull of thrilling fretboard
fusillades, tempered with some uncannily lyrical six-string work by two of the
most esteemed players of their generation. For music aficionados, this
collaboration is a match made in heaven.

Started
in 2011, Sketches is a Brooklyn-based collective jazz quintet in which each
member writes music based on another member's musical idea. Inherent in each
piece is the challenge of blending two distinct musical personalities, yet with
an ensemble of strong composers and sensitive performers, the results have been
as engaging as they are unpredictable. Scott Yanow commented in Jazz Inside
Magazine that, "these five musicians all have compatible styles and listen
closely to each other, two qualities that give Sketches its own group sound . .
. With consistently fine solos (pianist Cherner is particularly inventive) and
worthy themes, Volume One is an excellent start for Sketches."

On
Volume Two, Sketches continues its investigation and exploration of their
unique collaborative compositional process. The music on the band's sophomore
album is a result of the growth that they have experienced while touring and
performing music from their debut, appearing not only in New York City, but
also performing in Washington D.C, Baltimore, Portland, and Boston. Volume Two
reflects a deepening understanding between the band mates, building upon the
critically-acclaimed music they offered on Volume One. As with the music from
Volume One, each member shared a sketch from his notebook (e.g. any musical
fragment, a collection of fragments, an incomplete tune) and another member
used that as the basis for a new composition. The band then rehearsed and
developed the compositions further. In this process, no tune is deemed complete
until the band plays the composition and each improviser finds a way of
coloring the pre-written material. Although the compositions start as
"sketches", they are forged into complete compositions with ample
room for improvisation. The band recorded all of the music on Volume Two in one
day, a big indicator of the band's brilliance as ensemble players, and the
unmitigated virtuosity they posses on their respective instruments.

The
compositions on Volume Two reflect a very personal tone and approach. The
highlights include Ravitz's "Hail from Plainville" (based on a sketch
by Jeremy Udden), a tribute to Udden's personality and his compositional
approach - a rare ability to combine jazz and folk music in a seamless way -
that Ravitz admires. On Holman's "Y&H"(based on a sketch by
Ravitz), the use of "power chords" are a tip of the hat to Holman's
angst-loving teenage years. Ravitz's sketch inspired Holman to create a simple,
open-form composition that has a passionate grunge feel but also pays tribute
to the drummer's Middle-Eastern sensibility (Ravitz originally titled his
sketch "Y&H" as a dedication to Israeli-born musician Yaron
Herman). Bassist Martin Nevin's "Dyson Ritual" (based on a sketch by
Udden), is meant to evoke a tribal ritual with the opening theme summoning the
members of the tribe and a call to the forces that the ritual honors. Cherner's
"Caught In The Storm" (based on a sketch by Holman) depicts the drama
and volatility of either an internal, or actual, storm. Cherner was drawn to
the harmony that resulted from the various permutations of the pitch set and
the rhythm that Holman's sketch included. The band enters gradually as the
storm brews, crackles with dissonance, finds moments of lyricism, gains
momentum, and eventually dies down. In the coda, the listener is left with the
tranquil space that's left in the storm's wake." Throughout Volume Two,
the band delivers, "impressive post bop material, with rich and
intelligent arrangements and a clever mix of melody and improvisation . . .
You'll like these guys!" - George Harris, JazzWeekly.

More on
Sketches: The members of Sketches are leaders of their own bands, and in-demand
sideman as well, having performed and/or recorded with Lee Konitz, Joe Lovano,
Fred Hersch, Darcy James Argue's Secret Society, Steve Lacy, John Hollenbeck,
George Garzone, Aaron Goldberg, Aaron Parks, & Esperanza Spalding, among
countless others. The artists have also garnered multiple accolades from the
Young Jazz Composer Awards, the BMI Foundation's Charlie Parker Jazz
Composition Prize/Manny Albam Commission, as well as both national and
international performance competitions. United in Sketches, these five
musicians become a formidable force of creativity.

Of her
current work she says, "I discovered an intrinsic emotional quality in
Brazilian music that helped me find a deeper level of self-expression. After
having performed many times with Brazilian jazz artists throughout the years in
New York City and Brazil, I began to envision recording my newest album in Rio
de Janeiro. I had worked with world-class Rio-based jazz artists in Brazil, and
realized that I had found the perfect group of musicians to perform my music
and complete my vision." In the spirit of creating a multi-cultural
recording, vocalist and music educator Professor Roger Wesby wrote lyrics in
Spanish for one of Dreyerʼs
compositions. Brazilian vocalist Débora Watts adapted these lyrics to
Portuguese, and penned lyrics to another one of Dreyerʼs songs. Vocalist Teri Koide
contributed her vocal talents and English lyrics to another piece, and Karen
Rodriguez helped with further Spanish lyrics and stellar vocals. The repertoire
was completed with the addition of two arrangements of a composition by the
legendary Romeo Santos.

DAN
MASTROIANNI – TEARS AND WHISPERS

Recorded
in 1984, Mastroianni recorded his album with banks of keyboards, and a few
musician buddies. The ‘experimental’ nature of the album shines through on
nearly every track. This was new technology, and it sometimes sounds like
Mastroianni was finding out exactly what each machine could do, as he did it!
He also provided the edgy vocals, making for a very idiosyncratic
artist/writer/producer album. Many of you will now know the brilliant uptempo
boogie of Just One Touch (which was featured on BBE’s own Americana 2
compilation last year) but whatever you are expecting from this ultra-rare
private press, you are likely to be surprised. Style, tempos and moods changes
throughout, the only constant being Dan Mastroianni’s harmonic adventurousness,
and primitive, expansive synth sounds that never quite let up. You can tell he
was having fun making the album, and was coming from a place all of his own,
though one might guess he’d listened to a fair amount of Weather Report, Yellow
Magic Orchestra, George Duke and funk/boogie before he committed himself to
wax. Some highlights: You and I is in floaty mid-tempo soul mode and features
some fine soloing from Dan. Lead On is blue-eyed boogie, bringing to mind the
likes of David Bendeth; Million and One is nothing short of trippy with its
manic bassline and swelling synth chords. Blame It On Love has enough changes
of direction for three tracks, and again showcases what a good player Dan was
when he soloes. Shine could conceivably get the two-step vote. And look out
throughout for some noteworthy playing from Dan’s brother on reeds. As Dan
says, this album was a ‘fusion’ concept in every sense: a fusion of man and
machine, of ‘carbon and silicon’, mind and matter… it was recorded as a labour
of love, and now, three decades later, it’s time for the rest of the world to
share the love! ~ bbemusic

MEGA
JAWNS – TEN LETTERS FROM HOME

Mega
Jawns were born on March 10th 2014 in a basement studio deep beneath the frozen
streets of West Philadelphia. The product of a chance meeting between two veteran
producers, both named Will. Their debut LP ‘Ten Letters From Home’ was written,
recorded and mixed within seven days of the pair first shaking hands and is due
to be released later this year on BBE. Philly keyboard player, vocalist and
producer Will Brock has been a journeyman on the international soul & jazz
scene for many years, touring and performing alongside the Stylistics, Miles
Jaye & Marion Meadows others. Equally at home in the studio as behind the
piano, Will has seen releases on King Street Records & recorded with
Stephanie Cooke & King Britt as one half of production outfit Soul Dhamma. UK
producer & DJ Will Sumsuch has been a stalwart of the European deep house
scene for over a decade, playing shows from Brighton to Barcelona, Hoxton to
Helsinki. His unique brand of deep-thinking electronic production has found
favour with discerning DJs the world over, among them Ben Watt, Osunlade,
Justin Martin & Jody Wisternoff. The
duo initially worked together on Sumsuch’s single ‘Simpatico’, which was
released on his own label Colour and Pitch in 2013, garnering support from
legendary house vocalist Robert Owens among many others. Following the release,
Sumsuch decided to hop on the plane to connect in person, and maybe make a
couple of tracks too. The pair joked about making an LP, but neither really
thought it would happen in a week… The
resulting music can only be described as the joyous sound of two talented
musicians and producers working together in unison, completing each other’s
sentences. With the full weight of Philly soul tradition underpinned by unmistakably
restrained European electronica, this record captures a character that neither
performer could have summoned up alone. “Spirits were with us in the studio
that week” says Brock and for once, the usually jovial Sumsuch simply nods
solemnly. Joy is a taster from the the album, due to be supported in the clubs
by John Morales, Louie Vega, Boddhi Satva and Kerri Chandler. ~ bbemusic